


It's the Little Things

by krizzlybear



Category: BanG Dream! (Anime), BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Bandori Rarepair Week 2020, F/F, Implied Kudoharu cameo, Light Double Entendres, Sayo Deserves To Get Some
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:33:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24515437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/krizzlybear/pseuds/krizzlybear
Summary: In which Yamato Maya is the ketchup to Hikawa Sayo's french fries.
Relationships: Hikawa Sayo/Yamato Maya
Comments: 7
Kudos: 32





	It's the Little Things

Sayo Hikawa went through her usual morning routine, and as she expected, by the time she had come to the table for breakfast, Hina was already gone.

Good, she thought. It was all according to plan. Even with all of the highs and lows that came with her history with Hina, Sayo had come into her own and had figured out an approach to playing guitar that worked for her personally. She could finally recognize her own talents as distinct from Hina’s, but that didn’t stop her from getting into her own head about her sister.

For instance, she made sure not to tell Hina that she was going to Edogawa Music, the local instrument and equipment store, for the sole purpose of installing a new pickup into her guitar. Sayo had saved up just enough money from allowance and chores to be able to pay for this somewhat minor adjustment to her prized possession. Yet, for whatever reason, she was adamant that nobody in the house knew of her plans for the day. So when her parents, who were already at the table eating breakfast, had asked her what she was up to, Sayo was uncharacteristically dodgy.

“I don’t know what’s gotten into you today, dear,” Her mother said, “but please don’t go overboard. I worry enough about your sister, I don’t want to have to deal with another one of her.”

Somehow the idea that she would want to be anything remotely similar to her sister nearly made Sayo spit out her morning miso.

“That’s what your mother is talking about.” This time it was her dad who chimed in, speaking pointedly from behind a newspaper.

“My apologies.” Sayo conceded. “You know how I feel about Hina. She definitely needs to reel it in more, and you can be assured that I have things under control.”

She quickly finished the rest of her meal, and while her parents were occupied with cleaning up the dishes, she stepped out of the house with her guitar in tow.

“Nobody needs to know about this,” Sayo muttered to herself. “It’s not a big deal.”

Other than perhaps the student council room, there was no other place that felt more at home to Sayo than the Edogawa music store. As she calmly strolled up and down the various aisles and examined the items on display, she reacquainted herself with the world of band equipment and gadgets that, somehow along the way, she had taken a minor interest in. Back in those days where she and the rest of Roselia would rent out different pieces of equipment from CiRCLE during their practices, she had gotten used to the idea of fiddling around with her sound in ways that relentless practice alone couldn’t accomplish. Once she learned about the different options that were out there, she was hooked.

Nonetheless, Sayo also peeked around to see if anyone else she knew was there. She understood why she wanted to keep this a secret from her sister, but to sneak around everyone else was a bit...odd to her. There was nothing to be ashamed of, at least, as far as fiddling around with music equipment was concerned. Sayo quickly shrugged off her odd thoughts and finally willed herself towards the customer service desk near the front entrance of the store.

“Welcome! How may I help you?”

A young woman in her twenties greeted her with a professional smile and her hair tied up in the back, with a cool blue streak running from it. Sayo flushed a bit at how pretty she was, but cleared her throat just as quickly.

“I called in ahead of time to inquire about having a new pickup installed on my guitar.” Sayo calmly stated. “I was given a reservation number so I could have it done first thing in the morning.”

After reciting the number off a note file on her phone, the woman at the desk scrolled through what appeared to be some sort of database on her computer screen. “Ah,” she said. “Hikawa-san, was it?”

“Yes.”

“Perfect. We already assigned our part-timer to this request ticket, but she’s still in the back getting ready to begin her shift. If you don’t mind waiting…”

“Oh, not at all.”

Sayo couldn’t help but be a bit concerned. She requested a premium service, so why was a part-time worker assigned to do the job? Part of her felt protective for her guitar, while another part of her wished that the woman in front of her would be the one to do it. She was gorgeous, and there was nothing wrong with Sayo getting a little service to go with her service.

In an attempt to get her head out of the gutter, Sayo’s eyes mindlessly wandered away from the woman and towards the impulse items display, next to which a bunch of different music magazines were sold. She eyed a particular issue of IDOL x IDOL, which featured a particular Hikawa girl on the cover, as radiant as an idol would be.

“Oh Hina,” Sayo sighed, “always doing things on her own, reaching new heights...Huh?”

As she flipped through the pages she happened upon a two-page spread filled with photos of different guitars and effects pedals.

“Odd, I wouldn’t think an idol magazine would have a section for band instruments and equipment.”

It didn’t take long for Sayo to glue herself to the two pages, as if she were window shopping through a catalogue. The captions were descriptive, and the accompanying article was compelling and informative. She even enjoyed the style of the writing itself. There was a hint of girlish charm to it that befitted an idol, but also had a captivating amount of enthusiasm that only made Sayo even more interested in her instrument and music in general.

“Ah, sorry about that, Sayo-san. I had to take care of something in the back- EEEHH!?!? Why are you reading through my article!?”

Sayo looked up, and right across the front counter from her stood a familiar face staring back at her with dreadful shock that almost scared Sayo likewise.

“Huh? Oh, it’s you, Yamato-san. I was just enjoying this column here, and judging from your reaction, it is only natural to assume that you were the one who wrote it?”

“You could say that I did, but…” Maya stared down at her feet, as if there was something to be embarrassed about.

“Contrary to what you might think, Yamato-san, I thought it was a delightful read. Do you always write about music equipment for this magazine?”

As Maya scrambled for words to downplay her accomplishments with her regular column, the realization had dawned upon the both of them.

“Oh! So you’re the one who’s going to install the pickup on my guitar then?” Sayo asked.

“Huhehe,” Maya snorted. “Of course, why else would I be here? I mean, I only work here part-time anyways, since Pasupare always keeps me busy. But I had nothing scheduled today so I requested a morning service shift!”

“I see,” Sayo furrowed her brow. “Could I ask you a favor then?”

“Whatever you’d like, Sayo-san!”

“Could you not tell Hina that I ran into you today?”

Maya gave Sayo a bit of a confused look.

“Why would you want me to keep it a secret from her?”

“Because,” Sayo paused. She wasn’t sure what to say at that moment, as whatever reason she could possibly give would sound incredibly silly. But because it was Maya of Pastel*Palettes, it set off a reflex in Sayo to make sure that Hina wouldn’t have any influence on the situation. “I suppose you could say that she gets a little too nosey sometimes, you know?”

“Oh, understood!” Maya said with a professional smile. Sayo couldn’t help but feel jealous about how brightly her sister shone as an idol, but it never actually occurred to her that Maya had a little bit of an appeal to her as well. They were the same age, sure, but Maya gave off a very down to earth vibe while being very self-assured about her own interests and individuality. Sayo identified that as a quality that she really admired in a girl.

A line of four or five customers had suddenly formed behind Sayo, prompting Maya to shuffle about through her work papers. “Anyways! I can take your instrument now, if you’d like.”

Sayo smiled at the hurried courtesy and slight panic that Maya suddenly showed, and words just spewed from Sayo’s mouth without warning.

“Would it be possible if I watched you work?”

“Huh? It’s not a big deal, Sayo-san. It won’t take too long, and you can trust that I’ll take care of your instrument to the best of my ability!”

“No it’s not that,” Sayo remarked. She already crossed the line of forwardness, so she might as well commit all the way. “I just thought we could have a little chat. About instruments and stuff, you know?”

The prospect of shop talk perked Maya up and she gave a glowing smile befitting of an idol. “Of course! Just follow me! Huhehe!”

For the briefest moment, doubt had crept through Sayo’s mind about her request to join Maya in the instrument maintenance room. She was definitely overstepping her bounds as a customer. But it was Maya Yamato, her sister’s friend from the band. That was good enough clearance, right? She peeked out into the back hallway. The store was practically empty save for the small handful of customers that wandered in during their conversation out front.

But in here, it was cramped. Though there was just enough breathing room, the varying instrument parts and wayward cables made the room much smaller than it looked, and thus Sayo felt like she was holed up right beside Maya, despite keeping a respectable distance from her.

“I’m sorry for intruding,” Sayo said, “especially since this room is a bit…”

“Tight?” Maya asked. “I like it this way. I mean, it’s more comfortable like this. The other employees don’t use this room all that often, since they’d rather just dump stuff in here for storage and all.”

“Yamato-san,” Sayo insisted, “you are practically working inside a closet. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Of course! It’s so comfy like this, huhehe.” The two of them looked at each other for a short moment, and Maya suddenly realized what Sayo meant. “Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry Sayo-san. If you want, you can stand in the hallway while we talk!”

“No, no. That’s completely fine.” Sayo leaned against the corner of another nearby desk, jockeying for some modicum of comfort. “I’m curious about your work, that’s all. Hina told me before that you like squeezing yourself into tight spaces, so I should have expected this, now that I mentioned it.”

Maya blushed. “Ah, it’s weird isn’t it?”

“Not at all. Whatever works for you, to be honest. We all have our own little hangups and preferences.”

Sayo looked around. “For example, for the longest time I didn’t want to modify my guitar in any way. I thought I had to keep it in pristine, untouched condition, the same way it came out of the case. If I wanted it to sound better, then I had to be the one to improve, not the guitar. Does that make any sense?”

“Not really.” Maya tilted her head. “That’s like ordering french fries and not eating it with ketchup. Or worse, it’s like not even putting salt on it!”

“What do you mean?” Sayo raised her voice, slightly flustered by the sudden analogy. “French fries are perfectly good by themselves, and the restaurant always puts salt on it anyways!”

“What I’m saying, Sayo-san, is that variety is the spice of life. If you’re given something, you’re allowed to do anything to it that suits your tastes. That’s what makes it individually yours! That’s what makes you unique!”

Maya’s words hung in the air, and Sayo gave a few moments to let them sink in. perhaps this is what was missing from her sound the entire time? Was her guitar skills really just french fries that lacked ketchup? It couldn’t possibly be that simple.

“I suppose you might be onto something.” Sayo conceded. “But that’s why I brought my guitar in for the installation.”

“Now you’re talking!” Mayo enthusiastically chimed. “I can tell by this model that you’re really looking for some added crunch. What made you choose EMG in the first place?”

“I made sure to do my research first. I looked online and saw some recommendation lists, and apparently this one is a suitable fit for Roselia’s style of music. Some of the most famous guitarists use it for their setup.”

Maya nodded, excited. “Indeed. I spoke with an industry exec the other day. They said that they were thinking about changing to a wider coil like this one, since the humbuckers they were originally using were more suited for an older style of idol compositions. It’s actually quite fascinating how much heavier rock music is getting nowadays!”

Sayo smiled. “Indeed. But hopefully I’ll still be able to find my sound with this.”

“What do you mean? You already sound excellent, Sayo-san. I respect the precision of your play, and I can assure you that this pickup is built to your strength! It attacks low tones very well, which someone with your strong strumming would benefit greatly from!”

Blood rushed up to Sayo’s cheeks. Maybe it was the cramped room and the single incandescent bulb hanging low, but she started to feel increasingly hot from all this talk. She enjoyed the spirited conversation she was having, but maybe perhaps she would be more comfortable in a more open setting.

“If you say so, Yamato-san.”

“Please, call me Maya.”

“Very well.”

The bulb buzzed with a low hum that beat down on Maya’s newsboy cap, and she wiped her forehead of sweat before taking her hat off entirely. She shook her head like a dog trying to dry itself off, and her bangs and short locks swayed wildly yet in bullet time, as if she were a spokesmodel for a cola commercial. The glasses didn’t fit the image, but Sayo found beauty in its unconventional nature.

“Say, Maya.” Saya said, finally forcing herself out into the hallway.

“Yeah? I’m almost done with this by the way.”

“Do you really think I’m going to sound even better with this?”

“Of course! You picked it out for yourself, after all. You sure know your stuff, Sayo-san. I really enjoy discussing these things with you!”

“Then in that case, uh.” Sayo once again forced herself to take a step forward. “In that case, would you care to join me in practice later today? I would like to hear what you think.”

Maya’s eyes widened. “Really? I’m so glad! It’s not every day you get to install a Het Set. I didn’t peg you for a Het kind of girl.”

“Believe me, Maya,” Sayo chuckled. “I’m far from it. But if it’s for the good of Roselia, then why not? I’d love your feedback.”

“Sounds good to me, huhehe!”

It didn’t take too long for Sayo to warm up to Maya’s trademark laugh, and by the time the modifications to her guitar were complete, she couldn’t help but squirm in anticipation for the session that was to come. It was clear that she was going to ask her out afterwards, but she was more excited to talk about music and hammer out the minutiae about her potentially new sound.

But most of all, she couldn’t wait to tell Hina all about it when the both of them met up at home later that evening. About her new guitar, and about Maya as well.

**Author's Note:**

> The pickups in question are the EMG James Hetfield Het Set. Excellent for heavy metal but versatile for lead guitar phrases. It's an ideal addition to Sayo Hikawa's setup.
> 
> This oneshot is part of Bandori Rarepair week, in which the prompt is 'part time'. Maya Yamato loves her part time job, as well as Sayo Hikawa :3


End file.
